Dell Streak - Split Personalities

Finding the Sweet Spot

When it comes to differentiating a phone from a smartphone, it's easy. The former performs basic cellular functions, with little emphasis on convergence. The latter, usually armed with a high-powered processor, fast acting HSDPA connectivity and a suite of hardware features such as a decent camera and GPS functionality, have become a common sight over the years.

So, when the Dell Streak was announced, we were finding it hard to place a category on it. It has the characteristics of a smartphone, sharing the same hardware specifications from the likes of Apple's iPhone 4 to the HTC Desire, except for one glaring difference - it's display size. Over the years, smartphones have breached the display size limit, moving beyond the 3-inch and 4-inch sizes to what the HTC Desire HD and HD7 have on their 4.3-inch capacitive display. The Dell Streak, housing a 5-inch display, is a size that brings it closer to the tablet genre such as the Samsung and the . In comparison, the earlier two tablets are very clear on their demographics. So what is the deal with the Streak? Is it a smartphone or a tablet?

First and foremost, does the Streak fit snugly in our pockets? Jeans are definitely okay as we found out by fitting it in our deeper jean pockets over the testing period. For the ladies, this device will probably find a more suitable spot in your handbags. A fair bit of warning, try not to drag the Streak out of your pockets or bag. The rear casing tends to nudge out quite easily, and if you aren't careful, you might misplace it as you pull the Streak out.

What about usability? We would suggest this to be a two-handed operation, even for those with 'mannish' hands. In the portrait orientation, our thumbs needed to stretch quite a fair bit since the size of the unit is larger than the average phone. Is one handed operation even possible? We gave that a shot, but a short few minutes later, we conceded defeat and opted to use both hands for ease of use.

Now that we've come to terms with how we should handle the Streak, its 220g weight is now much more manageable with both hands. Its profile is relatively slim, keeping most of its edges clean of buttons. Given that the landscape orientation is the default view, we used that as the reference point. You'll find most of the buttons at the top. This includes the volume, power and camera button. The volume button threw us off slightly, for the fact that we would have expected its up button to be the one on the right. Instead, it follows a portrait orientation, leaving the left button as the option to increase volume. To prevent more confusion, we noticed a bump placed on the up button. Unfortunately, its remaining buttons are too flushed with the device, which took us some effort to locate and use the power and camera button with ease.

Physical buttons are kept to a minimum on the Streak, and in lieu of that, we have a touch panel for its three main shortcut keys - home, menu and back. Once again, it's apparent that the default orientation is under landscape, as seen from how the home and back button are orientated. Touch panels need to strike a balance when it comes to sensitivity, and the Streak didn't quite manage to get that right. You'll need to hit the 'touch-buttons' on the right spots to actually get it working, and this was, frankly, quite frustrating to us.

Similar to the iPad and Galaxy Tab, the Streak opts for a 30-pin USB connector instead of the usual microUSB option on smartphones. We wonder if this is a standard that's implemented on devices designated as tablets. Whatever it may be, if you are upgrading to the Streak, you'll have to ditch your old microUSB cables or chargers aside and stick to the bundled 30-pin connector instead.

Turning Green

While the iPad might have triggered the tablet outbreak in 2010, there is another catalyst that brought forth the growth - Google Android. Tablets such as the Galaxy Tab, and the , have chose the open-source Android platform as its operating system. And we haven't yet touch upon the wide range of OEM tablets out there. Hence, it's no surprise that the Streak follows the trend by loading its hardware with the Android platform. Its initial announcement pointed to an Android 1.6 OS, with an impending update to Android 2.2. While we are essentially a few months late in laying our hands on the Streak, the bright side is, we get Android 2.2 right out of the box.

The lure of the green droid is in its flexibility when it comes to customization. Dell is definitely not shy in that aspect, and went ahead to toss in a few changes to its interface. Focusing on the widget realm, Dell introduced Stage Widgets, which covers basic features such as contacts, email, gallery, home, music, social and web. What caught our attention was the social widget, which gives you a quick glimpse of your Facebook or Twitter feeds. While each social widget allows you only one specific social network, you can add multiple social widgets, up to the 7-page limit of the Android home screen.

In line with its tablet identity, you get the Kindle and Zinio app preloaded onto the Streak. The former will be favorite if you're an avid book reader. In our opinion, at 5-inches, the display is still relatively comfortable for book reading. Zinio, on the other hand, might not get the optimum treatment. The magazine content on Zinio is better suited for a larger screen, say the iPad, or if you're not too picky, maybe the the Galaxy Tab's 7-inch display.

Talking about displays, the Streak uses a capacitive touch screen at a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels with multi-touch capabilities - fairly common aspects which are available on smaller smartphones. To give it a slight boost, it uses the same Gorilla Glass display as the Galaxy Tab and the iPhone 4. On paper, it's supposedly scratch resistant and much more durable than your usual glass panels. But we  would still advise due caution and care to be taken for the Streak's display.

Preloading the Streak with apps is just one of its added bonus. As mentioned earlier, the flexibility of the Android OS gives Dell the option to customize its interface. Nonetheless, the customization is more for practicality's sake. One apparent change is its menu, adopting a horizontal (in-line with its landscape orientation) scrolling instead of Google's original vertical scrolling. Swype is also included as the default input method. As such, you don't have to laboriously type on the Google keyboard, and have an easier time swiping letters on the keyboard to get your message out quickly and accurately.

Two is Better than One
 

The Hardware Checklist

To put things into perspective, we need to examine what the Streak is capable of with its hardware features. Powering the Streak is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor, the underlying chip that's a common sight with smartphones of a higher tier. That gives us a clue on how the Streak should perform on a comparative scale with similar devices such as the , or even Windows Phone 7 devices that have been stipulated to use the same Qualcomm processor. There were times when the unit was slow to respond to our commands, especially when we tapped on the touch buttons to access the menu, or return to the previous app or home page. While it might be sluggish in the transition, the Streak still performed decently when it was heavily loaded with apps, which is mostly apparent from the smooth operation via its customized user interface (as discussed in the Features page). Its user interface is considerably above average in terms of usability. And it helps that the Streak is loaded with Android 2.2, which comes with improved features such as Wi-Fi tethering and most importantly, Flash 10.1 support.

All About Performance

On its own, the Streak's audio playback wasn't sub-par, but neither was it boosted with audio enhancing equalizers. But if you aren't too concerned with this, we do think you don't need any equalizer settings to have an enjoyable audio experience with the Streak. The video experience, however, depends on how you perceive the Streak. Remember, the Streak is designed with a 5-inch screen, a supposedly suitable size that should satisfy those who are looking for a comfortable screen, without the bulk. But consider this - if you rather have more real estate to read your magazines, news or more importantly, videos, the Streak's 5-inch screen can't give you the same comfort level for your eyes as what the Galaxy Tab or iPad can. However, if your mindset is locked on the Streak as a smartphone, you won't find fault with the viewing space you get for your messages and emails.Though video playback was smooth and handled well with minimal frame loss, the 5-inch screen and the Streak's 800 x 480 pixels display resolution doesn't seem to be a good match for the fact that videos have a tendency to look less sharp.

Similar to the Galaxy Tab, the Streak comes with two cameras - one at the front for video calls, whilst the rear houses a 5-megapixel sensor with dual LED flashes. During our daily tests, we noted some photos that brought up some concerns over its quality. Our resolution and color charts came in handy to see if that is the case, and the results do confirm our initial impressions. On the resolution chart, we noticed a high noise level, which was especially prominent at the edges of the line readings. Our tests also push the camera's white balance to the limit with a tungsten light source, with the color chart reporting on its performance. The end result was warm colors on the palette, and we also have noise issues on the edges of the color chart. Our final check ended with a standard image, which definitely showed a lack of detail and sharpness for a cluster of fine objects, such as fur details of our test subject.

To end off the performance test, we put the Streak to the battery test. While it is also designated as a tablet, we decided to subject the Streak to the smartphone battery tests to give a clearer indication of where its mileage stands. This means we'll be looping a video of 240 x 320 pixels resolution endlessly on the Streak at 100% volume and brightness. Wireless connectivity options such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, with data constantly pushed to the Streak via Twitter or emails, were added in to push the device to its limits. The Streak is compared against the HTC Desire HD, Samsung Galaxy S and HTC Desire for two important reasons - similar hardware specifications (especially on the display size and processor) and its operating system - Google Android

The results didn't really surprise us. With its battery capacity rated higher at 1530mAh, the Streak managed a longer up-time against the Desire HD with a lower battery capacity, in spite of a smaller 4.3-inch screen. Though its mileage is a close match to the first HTC Desire, do note that the Desire sports a smaller 3.7-inch display, and our tests for the Desire were conducted on its first production batch using OLED display, which is a power-saver compared to the Streak's LCD display. Similarly, the Galaxy S, which uses Samsung's Super AMOLED display, shows itself to be the reigning power efficient device by lasting at least an hour above the Streak's limit.

Even though the Streak has the edge in its overall battery life against the Desire HD and Desire, its portability index isn't going to score very well due to its heavier weight and larger dimensions. From the above chart, you can see how it stacks up against the other three devices. This is where the Streak's position as a smartphone might suffer a hit for its less than compact nature.

Putting the Streak to our day-to-day use as typical smartphone with voice calls and intermittent data usage, the Streak lasted for around 12 hours on a single charge. You might find this to be an oddity, but the truth is, the earlier battery test is a harsh test that's designed to highlight the lower limit of your device's mileage. Beyond that, how you use the device, and its ability to handle the power drain from each feature, is very subjective. In this aspect, the Streak doesn't do well to entertain you over a long stretch.

For a parallel comparison of how it stacks up against the Apple iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab, you could . Note that a more taxing video clip was employed to test a true tablet with Wi-Fi enabled but no 3G services. As such, the numbers and comparisons aren't ideal, but they do give a rough idea where the Streak stands among them.  Where battery up-time is concerned, it would seem that the Dell Streak is almost on par with the Samsung Galaxy Tab, but once you factor in the screen size differential and the test clip type, the Tab is the better contender if size isn't an issue. Of course, the iPad is still reigning in sheer battery life but not as great in portability. In a nut shell, our above conclusion still stands as the Streak isn't a very convincing entertainment device. It tries its best, but there are limitations to what it can do.

Tablet, Phone or Me?

The Dell Streak is definitely a device that made us ponder on its identity. To consider it as a tablet isn't too far-fetched, given its 5-inch display that is a rare sight (for now) on mobile devices. This is aptly exemplified with how we had to handle the Streak with two hands for comfort and usability sake. Still, it fits comfortably in one hand even at 220g, while we explored the Google Android OS with the other hand. Speaking of size, this device is probably a more comfortable fit for those who have bigger builds to handle it more like a smartphone than a dual-handed tablet device.

You cannot deny that at 5-inches across, it isn't a size that's well-suited for movies or reading, which is the primary aim of the recent tablet offerings. As such, can you consider the Streak as a smartphone? It does have the usual cellular features, plus it does fit into the pocket of our jeans nicely. More importantly, you can still get away with taking a call using the Streak, unlike the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which will cover your face with its 7-inch display.

The Streak might be large in screen size, but it does come with a slim profile at 10mm thin. To keep its profile clean, you'll only find the buttons (which are too flushed to our liking) at the top. And when we meant top, that is with reference of the Streak held in a landscape orientation. Unfortunately, its touch sensitive buttons that house the Home, Back and Menu shortcuts, was a constant source of frustration for us due to its lack of responsiveness.

Fortunately, the late availability of the Streak in our region also meant that we get Android 2.2 preloaded onto it. While the inclusion of wireless tethering and Flash 10.1 support has sweetened the deal significantly, Dell went one step further to include its unique Dell Stage Widgets. These widgets do add more depth to the stock user interface, especially for communication widgets such as emails or social networks. Besides widgets, preloaded apps such as Zinio and Kindle give you a head start to download magazines and ebooks from these two services right away.

Even if you are not sure of how the Streak should be used, there is still a universal yardstick to measure with - its overall performance. The 5-inch display, coupled with a screen resolution of 480 x 800 pixels, is seemingly not a good match. With less pixels spread across a wider screen, we could say that videos looked less sharp than it should on a more compact screen. Nonetheless, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor did handle video playback smoothly with minimal frame loss, whereas its audio performance isn't anything to shout about and was decent.

The stickier point here is the Streak's battery life, which clocked up to 5 hours and 47 minutes as its absolute limit with our harsh battery test involving a constant video playback. Depending on your usage pattern, this mileage will increase accordingly, and for us, we saw the Streak throwing in the towel within the first 12 hours.

If you keep your expectations in check, then the StarHub-exclusive Streak is still worthy of your consideration when it's subsidized with an accompanying mobile price plan, or S$938 without contract.

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